LOS ANGELES — There’s sheer bravado in the title of Fox’s “The Next Great American Band.” But the network that gave us “American Idol” is primly cautious about whether it’s found another hit talent show.
Debuting 8 p.m. PDT Friday, “American Band” boasts an impressive group of finalists, and it’s from the same producers behind “American Idol.”
But are audiences ready for what Johnny Rzeznik, the lead singer of the Goo Goo Dolls and a judge on the new venture, describes as “basically like a big battle of the bands”?
“You just have to cross your fingers,” said Mike Darnell, Fox’s president for alternative entertainment. The No. 1 status of “American Idol,” he said, “doesn’t necessarily translate to the band show. … You can’t compare anything to ‘American Idol.’ “
Nigel Lythgoe, an executive producer for both series, just wants viewers to give “American Band” a fair shot. He’s willing, even eager, to say that “Idol” contestants suffer by comparison to the band hopefuls.
“I can pick out five bands that I can go, ‘Wow, these guys are tremendous.’ You can’t do that with the top 12 Idols,” Lythgoe said. “We’re saying to the public, ‘Look at this talent and say you don’t appreciate it.’ “
Rzeznik, who joined after being assured he could be a fully independent judge, pronounced himself “blown away” by the skill and spirit of the best contestants. He also appreciated that the contest goes against the grain of today’s music industry.
“People are tired of seeing really manufactured artists, who are very beautiful and can sing but don’t have their own body of work,” he said. “This is a cool process, not put together by a marketing team, a record company.”
The artists “just get up there and do their thing. If the audience likes it, they like it. If not, boom, you’re gone,” Rzeznik said.
Joining Rzeznik on the judging panel are Sheila E. and British-born TV host Ian Dickson, whom viewers will quickly learn answers to the nickname “Dicko” and comes from the Simon Cowell school of barbed commentary.
The show’s format is akin to “American Idol” but with a few tweaks. Instead of nationwide tryouts, bands submitted tapes online and about 60 — good, bad and ugly — were invited to audition at Lake Las Vegas, Nev., in what turned out to be 100-plus-degree summer heat.
Those contenders are pared to 12 finalists on the debut episode. Thereafter, two bands per week will be voted off by viewers.
Also unlike “Idol,” which has showcased pop singers from Gwen Stefani to Barry Manilow, there will be no guest acts on “American Band.”
“This really is about the talent,” Lythgoe said. Bands also will perform their own songs as well as cover versions of records.
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